Father Cromley
Introduction Father Cromley is a man about six feet tall, or at least he would be six feet tall, were it not for the significance of his slouch. He looks to be in his seventies, as denoted by his wrinkles, silvery white hair, and raspy voice. He walks about with a slight limp, and has bright blue eyes. He is of a thin build, and has arguably one of the most..."unique" smiles in Gielinor. He is known only as "Father Cromley" or simply "Cromley"; it is unknown whether it is a given name, a surname, or both, even to him. He is played by Krayl Venoth, when he is in a very...peculiar mood. Early Life Father Cromley doesn't remember much of his early life, seeing as he never had one! All he remembers is that he awoke in a field in Lumbridge, wearing the brown robes of a Saradominist monk and already was older than most human inhabitants of the region. Shortly after waking up, he was found by a small farm boy whose father worked the field. The boy quickly introduced himself as Tomas, and led the elderly man to the farmhouse. There, Cromley met the local farmer, whose name is not relevant enough to be mentioned in this article. After a brief conversation, the farmer, Joe (what? Joe is a perfectly valid name for a RuneScape character!) left for the fields and tasked the boy with cleaning up. What happened shortly after was not something appropriate for a publicly displayed wiki article, but suffice it to say, Cromley learned he had a certain...fondness for young boys, preferably a bit dirty and malnourished. As it turns out, the reason behind Cromley's mysterious origins is that he is an aspect of Saradomin that was separated from the core entity during Saradomin's return to Gielinor. Lacking memory, martial prowess, any degree of violent aggression, and the ability to take a hint, he is arguably one of the most useless combatants in any given fight. However, he is immortal, and protected by an unknown magic, rendering him invincible. Because of this, he is a good distraction in battle, but nothing more. It is unknown why he, as part of Saradomin, would have such a hankering for tender boy meat, but perhaps it is connected to a similar affliction within the clergy. Humble Origins Possessing only his robes, Cromley wandered the countryside, searching for both a home and purpose. Finally, he came to the town of Lumbridge, where his distinctive clothing caught the attention of Father Aereck, a man not terribly unlike himself. Except for that whole invincibility thing, but that's not important right now. Father Aereck led him to the local church, and there, after discovering Cromley's lack of memory, taught Cromley the history and geography of Gielinor, and explained the beliefs of the Saradominist religion. Cromley converted quickly, which makes him sort of a narcissist when one really thinks about it... Anyways, after his conversion, Cromley was given a job in the church teaching children the fundamentals of the religion. He did so for several months, and for obvious reasons indulged his, erm, "vice". When the scandal was eventually discovered, he was forced to leave Lumbridge (in quite a hurry, actually, as the mob of citizens toting torches, pitchforks, and other assorted devises of murderization was explained by Aereck to be acting against his best interest). Setting out with only his robes, a bit of food and water, and the small sum of coin he had saved during his tenure in the church, he made his way west toward Draynor. There, he replenished his supplies, and bought a walking stick, which he still possesses to this day. While in Draynor, he bumped into an old friend, Tomas, whom tried desperately to avoid eye contact with the priest. He failed, and it was quite the awkward encounter all around. Oh, and remember that walking stick? It's been used for more than just walking. After the reunion with Tomas, Cromley started off toward the Monastery in Northern Asgarnia. It was a long, difficult journey filled with many interesting stories which you neither need nor deserve to know, but through a great degree of grit, no small amount of courage, an unusually placed bit of badassery, and his literally being a god in human form he was able to survive the ordeal and reached his destination. Life at the Monastery Cromley assimilated well into life at the monastery, and was able to complete the secretive "Initiation" within a matter of days (though again too perverse to be explained in detail, suffice it to say it involves a large quantity of small boys, incense, goat blood, and silver powder), amazing his peers with his endurance and tenacity. However, all things must come to an end, and now he has begun to wander Gielinor, seeking to serve Saradomin, in more ways than one. A Game of Questions, A Battle of Wits While visiting the Rising Sun Inn in Falador, Cromley once found himself engaged in a game called "Truth or Dare" by the other players. He quickly caught onto the ruse as an attempt to corrupt and convert him to their pagan faiths (that some of them were Saradominist themselves is, as always, irrelevant). He played along with their games, but they could not outsmart him. Finally, it was stipulated that another player had to lift his robe and look up it, but he allowed it, his faith unshaken. Out sprang a scantily clad youth who bolted for the nearby staircase and the freedom it promised. He was, however, halted by the steel collar clasped around his neck, connected to Father Cromley by a chain lashed around the monk's thigh. Many a soul was saved that day. Amen. The Battle of the Rising Sun On a self-given quest to spread the Light of Saradomin through Asgarnia, Cromley passed through the Rising Sun Bar in the aftermath of a brutal bar fight between a disgruntled nobleman, a woman and a mushroom-eating purveyor of peace and "positive vibes". Overhearing Jude, the peaceful flower-child (*ahem* dirty hippie *ahem*) trying to convince the woman, Saewyn, to allow him to help fix her nose, which Jude had broken in the fight, Cromley hobbled over to offer his assistance. Though Saewyn refused his offer of prayer, Cromley saw that underneath her tough exterior she was a beautiful soul which needed saved. And so, despite her apprehension, he reached out to touch her nose. She swatted his hand away, but no sooner had she touched him did his powerful, violating energy wash over her, popping the cartilage back into place. Though she swore incessantly, uttering many un-ladylike things, he knew that deep down, she had grown one step closer to Saradomin. As she felt the violating warmth of Saradomin's love, Cromley hobbled over toward the counter, and peered over to see Alaric, whose unconscious body lay on the floor from the fight which Cromley had so narrowly avoided. Cromley asked several of the strapping young men in the bar for help moving the young Alaric to the Monastery to receive some much needed "special attention". However, they refused, and he was left to pout. Finally, Cromley spoke once more to the flower-child Jude. After discussing the peace and love of Saradomin, Jude left the bar with a special spring in his step. Cromley could tell that, with his help, Saradomin had touched another desperate soul. And so blessed him in the name of the Father, the Son...ooh, the Son, how he did love the Son. Category:Characters